Block forming mold



April 1966 M. VALDASTRI, SR 3,246,870

BLQCK FORMING MOLD Filed April 23, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

2 MARIO VALDASTRI, SR.

BY 6-PhuL -4L A TTORNE Y Aprll 19, 1966 M. VALDASTRI, SR 3,246,870

BLOCK FORMING MOLD Filed April 23, 1964 s Sheets-Sheet 2 Fl 6 5 INVENTOR. FIG 4 MARIO VALDASTRI SR,

ATTORNEY April 1966 M. VALDASTRI, SR 3,246,870

BLOCK FORMING MOLD Filed April 25, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. MARIO VALDASTRI, SR.

A 'I'TORNE Y United States Patent 3,246,870 BLOCK FORMING MOLD Mario Valdastri, Sin, Honolulu, Hawaii Filed Apr. 23, 1964, Ser. No. 362,048 6 Claims. (Cl. 249-74) This invention relates to a mold for building blocks and the like.

More particularly, the invention is an improvement upon the structure disclosed in my prior United States Patent 2,397,223 of March 26, 1946.

The general objectives of the invention remain the same as those set forth in the said prior patent.

The prior patented structure, while. generally successful, had certain deficiencies, and it is the prime objectof this invention to overcome completely these deficiencies. One deficiency in the prior patented structure resides in the tendency of the ejector plate or pusher plate to warp or bend when the wet molded block is being ejected. Another deficiency in the prior device was the tendency 'for the molded mixture to stick or adhere to the ejector plate at the time of ejection. These factors have been completely overcome in the present invention and the structure has been further simplified and rendered more sturdy 'and more economical to manufacture while retaining the same basic simplified mode of operation disclosed in said prior patent. The advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming apart of this application and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the mold structure constituting the invention in one operative position thereof, partly broken away,

' FIGURE 2 is a vertical section taken on line 2-2 of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 33 ofFIGURE, 2, 1 p

FIGURE 4 is afragmentary vertical section taken on line 4-4of FIGURE 3,

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on line 55 of FIGURE 3, V

' FIGURE 6 is a vertical section through the mold structure substantially as in FIGURE 2 but inverted and showing'the operation of ejecting the block from the mold according to the invention improvements, and

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of ejection and supof illustration.

For a general understanding of the invention structure and its mode of operation and use, reference is made to my prior Patent 2,397,223, already mentioned above, and the teachings of this patent are incorporated herein by reference.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral 10 designates an open top rectangular mold box formed of heavy gage sheet metal or the like and including side and end walls 11 and 12 and a partial bottom wall made up of transverse bars 13 and longitudinal bars 14, integral with the box body or welded thereto.

The mold box 10 further comprises a pair of upstanding hollow'cores having their top walls flush with the open top of the box 10 and being supported at their bottoms upon the bars 13 and 14 constituting the bottom "ice of the mold box and welded to these bars. As shown in the drawings, the cores 15 are spaced from the side and end walls 11 and 12 and are spaced from each other.

The invention further comprises a supporting and block ejecting assembly 16 shown separately in FIGURE 7 and adapted for relative movement with the mold box 10 during the use of the invention.

The assembly 16 comprises an ejector plate 17 which is rectangular and has a pair of large openings 18 to receive the cores 15 in assembly. The openings 18 are of a sufficient size to permit the ejector plate 17 to reciprocate somewhat longitudinally of the box 10 in response to the coaction of means to be described. The overall length of the ejector plate 17 is somewhat less than the distance between the end walls 12, as shown in the drawings, to allow the above-mentioned reciprocation of the ejector plate 17 during the block-ejecting operation to be described. The width of the ejector plate 17 may be such that it has substantially sliding engagement with the mold box side walls 11. The plate 17 is perforated as at 19 to reduce the tendency for the wet mix to adhere to the ejector plate as explained in said prior patent.

With reference to FIGURES 2 and 3, the ejector plate 17 fits movably within the mold mox 10 and in the spaces between the cores .15 and the side and end walls 11 and 12 of the box. In the upright position, the ejector plate 17 rests upon a pair of longitudinal parallel downwardly opening channel bars 20 having spaced longitudinal slots 21 formed therethrough near the opposite ends thereof. Rivets 22, bolts or the like secured within openings of the ejector plate 17 have sliding engagement within the longitudinal slots 21 to facilitate the reciprocation of the ejector plate independently of the channel bars 20 and supporting leg structure and relative to the box 10 and block cores 15 during the critical ejecting operation.

Another important purpose of the channels 20 is to materially stiffen the relatively thin ejector plate 17 so that it will not bend or warp when pressure is applied thereto during block ejection, as depicted in FIGURE 6. Without the channel bars 20, there is a strong tendency for the plate 17 to bend under the pressure of ejection because pressure is applied thereto at the opposite ends thereof through the leg means now to be described.

The leg means at each end of the assembly 16 comprises a pair of substantially rigid generally U-shaped rod elements 23 or legs having outer long sides 24 arranged outwardly of the end walls 12 in assembly and inner short sides 25 parallel to the sides 24 and spaced inwardly therefrom and inwardly of the box sides 12. The sides 24 and 25 are integrally connected by short transverse bight portions 26. The bight portions 26 at each-end of the assembly 16 are rigidly interconnected by flat bars 27, welded thereto, and the remote ends of long sides 24 are similarly rigidly interconnected by flat bars or plates 28 parallel to the bars 27. Corresponding ends of the short sides 25 are welded at 29 to the channels 20 near the opposite ends thereof.

As shown in the drawings, the short sides 25 of the leg units project through slots 30 in the bottom of the mold box 10 outwardly of the bars 13. The ejector plate 17 lies bodily within the mold box, as shown, and in effect forms the bottom supporting surface for the moldable material placed in the mold 'when the same is positioned as in FIGURES l and 2 and described in my prior patent. The channels 20 lie in the spaces between the box side walls '11 and the cores 15, as shown in the drawings.

The end walls 12 of the mold box are provided centrally with rigid handles 31, welded thereto, for coaction with the bars 27 in manually manipulating the mold, generally as described in my prior patent.

In order .to cause the required horizontal reciprocation of the ejector plate 17 near the end of the block-ejecting operation depicted in FIGURE 6, there is provided upon the inner opposed sides of the cores 15 in vertically staggered relation and near the open side of the mold box a pair of preferably semi-circular opposed cam elements 32 welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the cores .15. As shown in FIGURES 2 and 6, one of the cam elements 32 is disposed adjacent or flush with the open side of the mold box while the second cam element 6-2 is spaced somewhat below or inwardly of the open side. The arrangement is such that when the mold is inverted and stabilized as shown in FIGURE 6 and the operator uses the handles 31 and bars #27 to draw the mold box upwardly and eject the wet molded block B, the center bar 3-3 of the eject-or plate 17 is caused to first engage the inner curved cam element 32 and be shifted to the right, as indicated in FIGURE 6. Subsequently, as the block ejection is completed, the center bar 33 of ejector plate 17 will engage the second cam element 32 and be shifted to the left as viewed in FIGURE -6. This shifting or reciprocating of the ejector plate 17 at the end of the block ejection operation constitutes a very important feature of the invention and an important improvement over the Construction in my prior patent.

As previously pointed out, the ejector plate 17 when engaged by the cam elements 32 may shift freely relative to the mold box and the channels 20 and associated parts, by virtue of the sliding connection of elements 22 within the channel slots 21. This quick reciprocation of the apertured ejector plate 17 near the end of the ejecting operation effectively prevents the wet molded block from sticking to the ejector plate and the ejection is accomplished in a quick and clean manner. As previously pointed out, another important feature of the invention resides in the fact that the channels 20 serve the dual purpose of rendering the ejector plate 17 rigid so that it will resist bending during the ejecting operation, and this in turn renders the formation of the block more perfect.

The present construction also renders the manipulative relationship of the elements 27 and 3 1 more convenient in the present device than in the prior patented structure.

In view of the incorporation of the prior patent herein by reference, it is deemed to be unnecessary to describe the general use or operation of the mold in further detail because the general operation remains the same. The invention herein resides primarily in the means to cause reciprocation of the ejector plate at the critical time in the ejecting operation, a part of such means serving the dual function of strengthening the ejector plate. As previously pointed out and as clearly shown in FIGURES 2, 3 and 6, there is adequate clearance between the structural portions of the mold box 10 and the ejector plate 217 to allow the latter to reciprocate horizontally upon engagement with and passage over the cam elements 32.

When the mold is positioned upon a temporary support for receiving the moldable mix as in FIGURES 1 and 2, the mold box 10 is supported and the bottoms of the channel '20 are resting upon the bars 13 and 14 which make up the bottom wall of the mold box. When the mold is inverted and supported by the bars 28 on a level surface, the user grasps the elements 27 and handles 31 and draws the handles upwardly to elevate the mold box and eject the block B. Upward movement of the mold box 10 will be limited by cont-act with the bight portions 126 which will occur after the block is fully ejected.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example of ,the same, and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A mold for building blocks comprising a mold box having side walls and internal cores defining a mold cavity, an ejector plate movably mounted within the mold cavity and shiftable toward and from the open side of the mold box for ejecting a wet molded block therefrom, reinforcing bars engaging one side of the ejector plate near opposite parallel edges thereof, means forming a guiding sliding connection between the ejector plate and said bars and allowing reciprocation of the ejector plate relative to the mold box and bars, cam means on the mold box engaging the ejector plate during the ejection of a block from the mold and causing reciprocation of the ejector plate near the end of the ejecting operation, leg support means for the ejector plate and said bars and attached rigidly to the bars near opposite ends thereof, and coacting handle means on opposite sides of the mold box to facilitate inverting the mold and moving the mold box relative to the ejecting plate and leg means.

2. A mold for building blocks comprising a rectangular mold box having an open side and side walls and spaced internal cores defining with the side walls a mold cavity, a conforming flat ejector plate within the mold cavity shiftable toward and from said open side, said ejector plate having clearance space relative to said cores and one pair of mold box side walls to allow reciprocation of the ejector plate in one direction, a pair of spaced parallel channel members slidably engaging the bottom face of the ejector plate and disposed with the mold cavvity on opposite sides of the cores and having longitudinal guide slots, fastener elements rigid with the ejector plate and engaging said slots movably, leg supporting means secured to the channel members near the ends thereof and extending outside of the mold box for engagement with a supporting surface, coacting handle means on the mold box, and a pair of spaced cam elements on the mold box near and inwardly of the open side thereof and engaging a part of the ejector plate when the ejector plate approaches the open side of the box during block ejection to reciprocate the ejector plate relative to the mold box and channel members thereby freeing the ejector plate from the block, the channel members also reinforcing the ejector plate and preventing bending thereof during block ejection.

3. A mold for blocks comprising a mold box having side walls and open top and at least a partial bottom wall when positioned in an upright material-receiving attitude, core elements within the mold box secured to the bottom wall thereof and being flush with the open top of the box and forming with the side walls a mold cavity including a passage between the core elements, an ejector plate within the mold cavity including a bar portion in said passage between said core elements and having clearance openings receiving the core elements and spaced somewhat from one pair of mold box side walls, a pair of staggered rounded cam elements on the opposed sides of the core elements near the open side of the mold box and engageable with the bar portion of the ejector plate in succession to cause reciprocation of the eject-or plate during block ejection, and leg supporting means for the ejector plate having sliding guided connection therewith and extending outside of the mold box and also within the mold box.

4. The invention as defined by claim 3, and wherein the leg supporting means includes a pair of reinforcing bar elements underlying and engaging the ejector plate, and separate means establishing a restrained sliding connection between the bar elements and ejector plate.

5. The invention as defined by claim 4, and wherein said separate means comprises slots in the bar elements and connectors engaging movably Within the slots and secured to the ejector plate.

6. A block mold comprising a mold box having internal core elements and side walls defining 'a mold cavity, an ejector plate movably mounted Within the mold cavity, leg supporting means for the ejector plate including hand grip portions and extending inside of and exteriorly of the mold box, coacting handle means on the exterior of the mold box in opposed relation to said hand grip portions and facilitating the ejection of a block from the mold, bar elements within the mold cavity secured to the leg supporting means and slidably engaging the ejector plate and having a movable connection therewith so that the ejector plate may reciprocate relative to the mold box and leg supporting means, and cam means on References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 861,462 7/ 1907 Hawk M-9-66 2,397,223 3/ 194-6 Valdastri 9A9 136 2,460,697 2/ 1949 Kreger 249-66 1. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner. 

1. A MOLD FOR BUILDING BLOCKS COMPRISING A MOLD BOX HAVING SIDE WALLS AND INTERNAL CORES DEFINING A MOLD CAVITY, AN EJECTOR PLATE MOVABLY MOUNTED WITHIN THE MOLD CAVITY AND SHIFTABLE TOWARD AND FROM THE OPEN SIDE OF THE MOLD BOX FOR EJECTING A WET MOLDED BLOCK THEREFROM, REINFORCING BARS ENGAGING ONE SIDE OF THE EJECTOR PLATE NEAR OPPOSITE PARALLEL EDGES THEREOF, MEANS FORMING A GUIDING SLIDING CONNECTION BETWEEN THE EJECTOR PLATE AND SAID BARS AND ALLOWING RECIPROCATION OF THE EJECTOR PLATE RELATIVE TO THE MOLD BOX AND BARS, CAM MEANS ON THE MOLD BOX ENGAGING THE EJECTOR PLATE DURING THE EJECTION OF A BLOCK FROM THE MOLD AND CAUSING RECIPROCATION OF THE EJECTOR PLATE NEAR THE END OF THE EJECTING OPERATION, LEG SUPPORT MEANS FOR THE EJECTOR PLATE AND SAID BARS AND ATTACHED RIGIDLY TO THE BARS NEAR OPPOSITE ENDS THEREOF, AND COACTING HANDLE MEANS ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE MOLD BOX TO FACILITATE INVERTING THE MOLD AND MOVING THE MOLD BOX RELATIVE TO THE EJECTING PLATE AND LEG MEANS. 